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Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Football

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Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Football

Welcome to the Dragon's Den
With money burning a hole in his back pocket and keen to give something back to Scottish Football, the Dragon invited ambitious young hopefuls to try and persuade him to part with his cash to fund their dreams of owning and running their own Scottish football club. He might be wealthy but he's not inclined to throw money away; therefore, the Dragon went through a rigorous selection process to choose which applicants would be worthy of spending his cash for the purposes of buying and rejuvanating a 3rd Division team.

Each had to come up with a solid business plan, spending money on improving their club's reputation; a new stadium; advertising to persuade people to come and fill the stadium; improving the desirability of the town; training and youth facilities; a donation to charity to 'prove' their quality as chairman and finally spending money to recruit a manager. The business plans (and revisions) can be viewed in this thread.

Scottish Division 3 - season 2007/08 - the clubs

Here is an introduction to the clubs funded by the generous Dragon and run by the young entrepreneurs:

Albion Rovers - Chairman:NepentheZClub infoPaul "Warlock" Wallace - Club manager - this guy looks the best talent in the division and the best thing ever to come from Coatbridge. Can they hang onto him?
Media prediction: 9th

Arbroath - Chairman:~Ian~Club infoMatt Skiba - A big fan of Arborath smokies, he can spot a player, but not so much potential; lets hope he gets good backroom staff if he's to develop the club long term.
Media prediction: 1st

Berwick Rangers - Chairman:glennukClub infoJosh Crane - Has a lot of talent. With the chairman's backing could really do a job for the English team.
Media prediction: 3rd

Dumbarton - Chairman:Robbo3dClub infoNikon Jevtik - Named after a make of camera and looks like the weakest manager in the league. His team might struggle to fill their massive 20,000 stadium if hee doesn't impress.
Media prediction: 6th

East Stirling - Chairman:rlipscombeClub infoArchie McFergus - Looks distinctly average. Will be hoping to do well though and avoiding the locals going back to watch the erstwhile biggest team in Falkirk, Falkirk, instead.
Media prediction: 7th

Elgin - Chairman:Arkitekt88Club infoCarl Vasquez - Appears to be a better coach than manager, but has bags of potential. Might be one for the future. The media think so - predicted to finish bottom.
Media prediction: 10th

Forfar - Chairman:paulhartman71Club infoJames Hartson-Harris - Again this guy doesn't look the best, but might well improve in future. Not great at spotting players, which is a drawback for a team with no players.
Media prediction: 5th

Montrose - Chairman:5ergioClub infoMengana - 2nd only to the Warlock in terms of managerial talent, should be able to bring in a good mix of established players and younsters.
Media prediction: 2nd

Stenhousemuir - Chairman:bermybhoyClub infoHenke - The legendary Swede will be hoping to get the fans flocking from all over the Stenny and Larbert metropolis to watch his side. Looks a well above average talent.
Media prediction: 4th

Stranraer - Chairman:Walcott's WonderkidsClub infoBrucie Bonus - This guy looks like he has a bit of talent. If it doesn't work out might find himself on the first ferry out of town.
Media prediction: 8th

So there we have it. At this stage, none of the teams have any players, so there's no point showing squads. It also means the bookies predictions are pretty arbitrary. The key this season is likely to be which teams can fill their squad with a decent standard of player.

How are they going to get on? Now you know how the clubs are set up and how good the managers are, let's have some predictions....

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

don't agree with Archie being 'average'!! ha ha good to see he's a fan of attacking football. can't predict too much at the moment, as pretty level playing field. all i will say is it's going to be interesting!!

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Originally Posted by glennuk

Cool no rush but any ideas when it will be up?

Will try and get an update or two done tonight.

I've run it on and from what I see there's been a number of signings, but they're struggling to spend big. The problem there is probably the league they're in, as it's reputation is a massive 2 (/20).

Astute loan signings might be the key in season 1.

Originally Posted by arkitekt88

just a note my training and youth points are the wrong way round than what i put in my business plan :s
predicted last???? omg, my club needs to look long term Rome wasnt built in a day

Arrghhh. I knew I'd mess something up. Really sorry mate. If it all goes pear shaped at elast you can blame someone else now

Originally Posted by robbo3d

Why do i get the feeling this could all go wrong? Without suggar daddy in charge, we need to make sure we fill the stadium. Otherwise we could be heading for a financial crisis.

The manager is poor as expected so the sooner he is replaced, the better. I dont expect us to challenge for the title in the first year.

My understanding of how it works is that your stadium is guaranteed to have approx your average attendance figure, so no worries there - initially. If they do poorly though, this will drop over time.

I like your long term thinking too. All of these clubs are already on a par with a few Div 1 or clubs, I would estimate. With the funding they have, they should all, in time, make progress. The main restriction is the single automatic promotion spot and lottery of the potential second one through the play offs...

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

End of first transfer window update

The prediction of almost everyone involved is that success in the first season is probably largely dependant on each team ability to get in some decent players. All have started out with no senior players, only newgen youth players, so the need is urgent.

With the in mind, how did the transfer window go for each team?

Taking them in alphabetical order, Albion Rovers were also very active, the Warlock splashing £69k of Nep's money. Most expensive signing is Chris Fahey, the manager taking the view that a solid keeper is the base to work from.

Arbroath signed a team worth of players including loans at a cost of £51k. Again the most expensive player is a keeper, with the money going on rockstar Tommy Lee. Think Pammy has moved to Arbroath as well?

Berwick are maybe taking the quality over quanitity approach, with only 8 players in, costing £80k. They made the biggest transfer, spending £70k on Murray Davidson. The fans will be hoping he's better than the stats suggest.

Dumbarton were very active, with 14 coming in, decimating the Queen's Park squad in the process. All this at of course no cost because they ain't got no money. Still, I've picked out Richard Bowers, who is maybe pick of the bunch.

The Shire managed to spend £81k on just 7 players, casting their net as wide as Australia. Biggest signing at £45k is defender Mark Baxter, who looks a prospect.

Elgin were strangely quiet, with boss Carl Vasquez perhaps taking the media's predictions of last place to heart, by spending only £1k on 7 players to his chairman's bemusement. That money was spent on veteren defender Alex Burns.

Forfar managed to bring in 13 players, raiding Brechin, Stirling and poor Queen's Park repeatedly. William Dyer cost a whopping £28k to fill the left back role, but it's hard to see why.

My own Stenhousemuir, brought in 13 players at a cost of £94k. The biggest signing was Calum Smith a decent striker who's made a good start to the season.

Stranraer boss Brucie Bonus was another who was quiet, signing only 7 players for all of £5k. The 'biggest' was journeyman centre back Chris Robertson.

Well, that's all they have to work with til January when reinforcements can again be brought in. As might be expected, those who were least active have generally made the worst starts. Fastest out the blocks though, was the mighty Stenny! Get in there! With just 4 games gone, the league table looks like this.

The cups start early in Scotland, and there's little to write home about. Only 2 clubs made it to the second round of the CIS cup, Arbroath and East Stirling crashing out to Motherwell and Dundee respectively.

In the Challenge Cup, Montrose had a brilliant 3-2 win a D1 Stirling, Albion Rovers saw off Sranraer on pens and Arboath slaughtered in-debt Dumbarton 6-0, each making it to the second round, all our other team falling at the first hurdle.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Good update Bermy.

Not a bad start in the league but what happened in the cup!
We have let in 7 in the league and 6 in the cup so it looks like we are struggling in defence/in goal.

My prediction was that quantity may be more useful than quality and it looks like i've brought in the most players so i'm happy. Bowers looks ok, obviously i cant tell about the others. I'll be happy as long as we have signed players for each position.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Looks like arbroath are a cup team then. Haven't made a great start in the league but getting through the first rounds of both cups was good, especially the thrashing off Dumbarton. My apologies to the Dumbarton manager.

CupsChallenge CupArbroath went on a great run, beating 1st division Dundee 2-1 away, before falling at home to Airdrie Utd, the eventual winners in the semi-final. None of our other teams made it past the 2nd round.

Scottish Cup
The 4th round is where the big boys come in, and three of our teams have made it through that far. Berwick secured the best result, thumping D2 East Fife 4-1 and will travel to Stirling (who Montrose have beaten this season) for the next round. Also through are Forfar and cup specialists Arbroath who take on D2 sides Raith (h) and Ayr (a) respectively.

Division 3
This is what really matters. Although this is long-term, promotion in the first season could be key to rapid progress up the leagues. With 19 games played, the league table looks like this. Again, GET IN THERE! But it's tight at the top, only the bottom 3 are too far out of the picture to be promotion/play off contenders. Biggest win so far has been the top v bottom mismatch, with Stenny drubbing Dumbarton 6-1 away.

Dumbarton's gamble on taking on massive debt looks decidedly dodgy now, as they sit rooted to the bottom. Their poor results mean that their massive stadium is far from full each week, although they are still well out in front in the average attendence stakes. On Dec 15, boss Nikon Jevtik became the first managerial casuality of the campaign, sacked by the ruthless David Robinson. In his place came the hugely experienced Alex Smith (screenshot to follow later).

GeneralRich list - Division 3 dominates the list, after the Old Firm, the big two from Edinburgh and Queen's Park. Is it inevitable that our clubs will begin to challenge at the top end in future?Manager job security - Anyone else hoping their manager's for the bullet better not hold their breath...

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

About to do another sneaky little update. Trying to come up with a template for these to cut down the time it takes, these might be a bit bland but hopefully allow more frequent updates. That said, not sure how much I'll do over the weekend so don't hold your breath.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Update - 1 Feb 2008

Transfer updateWith another transfer window, the clubs have had a chance to try and improve their fortunes or secure their lofty positions...

Albion Rovers (NepentheZ/Paul "Warlock" Wallace)Transfers - Among the busiest in the tranfer market, but no real inspired looking signings as yet. Screpis coming in from Hearts should improve the midfield once he starts playing.
Arbroath (~Ian~/Matt Skiba)Transfers - Brought in a couple of youngsters on loan and some more cash found itself heading to Stirling, including £22k on left back Ross Forsyth. Brought in 2 defenders, a winger and striker.
Berwick (glennuk/Josh Crane)Transfers - Biggest signing was the veteran striker James Grady who still looks more than capable of doing a turn at this level. Evans is another 33 year old midfielder and Campion a young defender.
Dumbarton (Robbo3d/Alex Smith)Transfers - Like Albion's boss, new man Alex Smith is trying to get them out of trouble by signing a whole squadron of players. Unfortunately, none of them look all that good at all.
East Stirling (rlipscombe/Archie McFergus)Transfers - Only one more permanent signing, midfielder Cairney looks pretty decent.
Elgin (Arkitekt88/Carl Vasquez)Transfers - Vasquez has been steadily bringing players in despite his slow start. Matt Somner looks the pick, he was released by Notts Co.
Forfar (paulhartman71/James Hartson-Harris)Transfers - Just a couple of signings this time, being a young striker, Wilkes and the very adaptable Danny Hall
Montrose (5ergio/Mengana)Transfers - Biggest signing was Thompson for £80k. He's adaptable and looks equally good on the right wing or up front.
Stenhousemuir (bermybhoy/Henke)Transfers - Only two more signings, both young centre backs. Look decent though, Henke knows what he's doing.
Stranraer (Walcott's Wonderkids/Brucie Bonus)Transfers - Brucie Bonus still resolutely determined not to spent cash, and it could hurt them. No screenshots as you don't want to see these guys, trust me.

Scottish CupIn the 4th Round, Berwick were beaten 2-0 at Stirling and Forfar went down 1-0 to Raith. However, Arbroath again showed great cup form, thoroughly outplaying Ayr Utd to win 2-0 at home. Their reward is a visit from Hearts.

Division 3League table - With another 4 games played, it's still tight at the top, Montrose keeping Stenhousemuir well in their sights. It's starting to look like a two horse race, but things can change quickly. Poor Albion and Dumbarton are now well adrift at the bottom.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

What is going on! Looks like my gamble isnt paying off. At least the manager has gone, i always intended on him only being a short term measure. It will be interesting to see how good the new man is, although with none of his signings even warranting a screenshot, i am not getting my hopes up. Roll on next season.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

It surprised me how many signings clubs made. From past experience, i have seen clubs starting with no players struggle to sign more than 5/6. This hasnt happened here and it has meant that a couple of quality signings can win you the league. The first season was never going to be my year with such a poor manager in charge at the start of the season. I'm just hoping that i dont suffer the embarrassment of finishing bottom.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Wahey, still going great in the cups. Hearts is going to be a very tough game, would be a huge accomplishment to beat them though.

Sixth in the league is a bit disappointing, but there's still time to improve on that. Forsyth looks like a good new left-back, and if Templeman keeps firing in the goals we could grab a play-off spot.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Second as predicted by the media. Lowest on the average attendances, maybe the only downside of Montrose at the moment. I really hope that we can hold on to Mengana, he is a great talent and a possible replacement could hamper our chances of improvement in the next year. Awesome updates bermybhoy. KUTGW mate.

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Update - 1 Mar 2008

Scottish CupArbroath's big game in the 5th round against Hearts would end in heart break, going down 0-3 at home but coming out with a lot of credit, pressing against 10 men but going out after 2 late goals.

Division 3League table - Stenhousemuir are going through a sticky spell, allowing Montrose to deplace them at the top. Elgin briefly hit the top and Forfar are hanging in there. Any for those 4 can realisically win it. At the bottom, Albion Rovers are putting together a decent run, too late for this season but it looks like condemning Dumbarton to bottom spot.

Team stats - Forfar hitting form at exactly the right time for a late push.Player stats - Smith and Wood still well out in front as top performers.

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Update - 1 Apr 2008

Division 3The Warlock deservedly secured the manager of the month award for some brilliant form from his side. If he'd got them playing like this sooner, they'd be pushing for promotion.

Team stats - Of the promotion candidates, Forfar and Stenhousemuir are now mired in terrible form at exactly the wrong time. Arbroath and Montrose though, look decent bets right now.

League table - It leaves the table looking like this. With 4 games to go, Montrose have put daylight between themselves and the rest, and must drop at least 4 points to be caught.

Player stats - Despite his side's poor form, Stuart Kelly of Forfar is maybe making a late bid for player of the year...

In other news, Celtic took the League Cup 2-1 v Hibs, and also eliminated Rangers at the Quarter Final stage of the Scottish Cup, making them favourites for that too. They also lead the premier league, and look on course for a treble.

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Update - 20 Apr 2008

Division 3April 19 Results - In the penultimate round of fixtures, some sensational stuff. Based on form, Stenhousemuir's 3-0 spanking of leaders Montrose is a massive upset. Are Montrose about to choke? Arbroath also beat basement side Dumbarton, but Forfar could only draw.

League table - It really is tight at the top. Depending on other results, Arbroath could finish top, or finish 3rd. With last day fixtures as they are though, each of the top three would be expected to win, with positions remaining as they are.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

I expected to struggle this season but bottom! We need a complete overhaul in the summer. The only positive is that we should be in a better financial position. But i am not even sure about that as the attendances have been lower than i thought.

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Update - 27 Apr 2008

Division 3April 26 Results - As expected, each of the top three secured wins. Forfar could only draw, but hang on to the last play off spot.

Final league table - Congratulations go to Montrose, the 3rd Division champions! Dumbarton finish well of the pace in bottom position.

In the Second Division Peterhead will play 3rd Division football next season, and should not trouble our teams too much. Queens Park face the lottery of the play-offs, where they must travel to Stenhousemuir for the first leg. Arbroath host Forfar in the first leg of the other tie.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Play off semi finals

Division 3 promotion play off semi-finals, first leg

Stenhousemuir v Queens Park A comfortable victory for my own side, Stenhousemuir, which should elimate Queens Park and ensure we have two clubs promoted this season.Arbroath v ForfarArbroath eased past Forfar, who have been out of sorts, with an easy win, and look good it make it to the final.

Division 3 promotion play off semi-finals, second leg

Queens Park v Stenhousemuir Sensational stuff. A last minute Jon Newby goal broke Stenhousemuir hearts, forcing extra time. But the Spiders legs couldn't hold out, and the dependable Smith and Bailey secured a draw on the day and safe passage to the final.Forfar v ArbroathForfar had the best of it, but couldn't score and Arbroath make it through.

So the final will be between Arbroath and Stenhousemuir. For the first leg, Arbroath are made 1-2 odds on favourites by the bookies. Based on past results, they will be favourites for promotion too.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Play off final

Division 3 promotion play off final, first leg

Arbroath v Stenhousemuir
In the 23rd minute, on-loan 17 year old centre forward Shane Sutherland gave Arbroath a deserved lead.
With 61 minutes gone, Sutherland was on hand to double it.
In the 73rd, young left winger Chris Chambers added to the agony for Stenhousemuir by making it 3.

And that's how it finished, a comfortable win virtually ending the tie at the half way stage.

Division 3 promotion play off final, second leg
After just 17 minute, Willie McLaren put Stenny in front, giving the club record capacity crowd of 14,488 hope.
In the 27th, the fans went crazy when the prolific Smith pulled another one back. 2-0 at half time, 2-3 on aggregate

In the second half though, Stenhousemuir just couldn't find a way through. After 65 minutes, Chris Templeman hit what was their only shot on target of the day, reducing it to 2-1 and effectively ending the contest.

So despite the best efforts of Stenhousemuir, it is Arbroath who celebrate promotion despite a 2-1 defeat. Congratulation to ~Ian~ on his success.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

End of Season 2007/8
Update on each of the clubs.

Albion Rovers (NepentheZ/Paul "Warlock" Wallace)ResultsLeague progress - a poor season that the Warlock will want to forget. Squad ratingsSquad contracts - made lots of signings, which we all predicted would be key, but evidently the quality isn't quite there.

Arbroath (~Ian~/Matt Skiba)ResultsLeague progress - a brilliant season which really picked up at just the right time, their momentum carrying the team to promotion.Squad ratingsSquad contractsMark McAllister - picked up from East Stirling for a whopping £210k after the end of the season. Had a decent season for the Shire before moving on.

Dumbarton (Robbo3d/Alex Smith - Nikon Jevtik - sacked)ResultsLeague progress - Hmmm, not much you can say. Pretty firmly the worst team in the league.Squad ratingsSquad contracts - the heavy debt burden appears to be retricting their spending on wages. Alex Smith - this is the new manager, the veteran formerly in charge of Aberdeen. Struggled to turn it around with the financial constraints in place, despite signings a number of players.

East Stirling (rlipscombe/Archie McFergus)ResultsLeague progress - constantly mid-table after a great startSquad ratings - sold one of their better players, McAllister, to Arbroath who therefore isn't here. Will do this screen before the transfer window opens in future.Squad contracts

Forfar (paulhartman71/James Hartson-Harris)ResultsLeague progress - never likely to win it, but comfortably made it into the play offs.Squad ratingsSquad contracts - they're paying top dollar and have some really excellent players. With some more good signings, likely to be contenders again next season.

Stenhousemuir (bermybhoy/Keld Bordinggaard - Henke - sacked)ResultsLeague progress - led most of the way, then suffered a late season collapse Squad ratingsSquad contracts - not spending nearly as much as some clubs, I'm hoping this will increase significantly next season.Keld Bordinggaard - Henke was rather harshly sacked after losing the play off final. (I believe this is related to a bug in the confidence feature). The new guy looks as good, if not better.

Stranraer (Walcott's Wonderkids/Brucie Bonus)ResultsLeague progress - their final position of 7th was actually the high point, a poor season for manager Bonus.Squad ratingsSquad contracts - clearly, they are placing a lot of reliance on youngsters. Need to go out and spend the chairman's cash to get anywhere.

Division 3
The league table has been posted already, so some other stats of possible interest:

An interesting first season then. My feeling is that the two promoted sides have a massive advantage now, and their spending power means they could do quite well again next season. Of those left in the 3rd division, I expect another two of our sides to go up again next year, with the relegated sides struggling badly against our cash.

If anyone would like to see anything else, do let me know.

Talking point

I've already run this to the end of the next transfer window, but need to do the write ups. Having had a poke about, there's been some interesting development. Some teams are spending BIG to get out of their respective divisions....it's much changed from the current year. At the same time, a few chairmen and managers are doing nothing to dispell the unfair stereotype of Scottish people as being tight... Some people will be very pleased, some will be puzzled at why the cash isn't being spent as it is elsewhere. So, predictions then...

How much do you reckon your team has spent on a player?

What do you reckon your top earner is now on?

Who do you reckon is the team to watch next season?

By the way, as a friendly heads up to anyone who's not posted yet, I'll start to keep a note as to who's contributing and who isn't....this is pretty time consuming so reports will end up getting cut out if you're not active and I don't think you're interested....just forewarning, cheers.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

KUTGW. What an awful season that was. I really dont know what to expect. Is there any chance I could see my finances. Just wondering whether I managed a profit last season. That will shape Dumbartons future. If they make money, we might be able to turn it around in the long run. But with lower attendances than expected, I dont think we are making enough.
The debt looks to be causing problems with the wages, hopefully we will have a bigger budget next season or we could end up off the pace again.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

robbo3d:

Took a nosey there by adding a manager. Basically, yes you are making money - raked in about £4m (!), nearly all from tickets and match day income, and had expenses of £2.9m. You have about £1.2m in the bank. The repayments and interest is £160k/month. In spite of the profits, the board is only allowing £300 a week for any player, which is a big disadvantage. If the attendances drop you might be in some trouble, which is presumably part of the board's thinking in restricting wages so much.....

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Well we are only getting in 11000 on average as it is so I cant see it falling too much more. Its good to see I'm making money. Its looking a bit better for the future. £300 a week isnt going to get me much quality though. Hopefully with a decent manager in charge, he can find some players willing to accept our wage structure. I am not particularly hopeful though!

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Also had the highest scoring game of the season. I think as long as we can invest a bit in players to back up the next set of youngsters coming through then we should do ok. Very important that we keep striker Robert Dunn though, as he seems to have scored all our goals this season!

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

great update once more. good to see us get a player in the team of the year. As long as we keep Williams, and sign a few decent players i am hopeful of an improved showing. i reckon we;ll have signed a few more players. as for the team to watch, that will be East Stirlingshire of course!!

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Mengana manager of the year as expected. No player stood up to be the leading one in the division but a great team performance from Montrose. As for the next season, I assume we and Arboath will be spending a lot to occupy a firm place in Second Division. I also predict Stenhousemuir, Albion Rovers, East Stirling and Forfar to finish in top four next year.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

How much do you reckon your team has spent on a player? 275k (I hope on another striker)
What do you reckon your top earner is now on? 5k Per week (On the striker)
Who do you reckon is the team to watch next season? The Mighty Berwick obviously.

Having the most games without scoring the most games lost in a row and having the two worst signings IS NOT good enough and i wll expect Josh Crane to have learnt from this experience and not pannick buy. I think some good quality will be in soon and if Churchill gets a good partner i can see us being a force to be reckoned with.

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2008/9 - September 1 - Part 1

Onto the second season for the Dragon funded clubs. All are looking to strengthen significantly to make some real progress. How have they all got on during the transfer window?

3rd DivisionAlbion Rovers (NepentheZ/Paul "Warlock" Wallace)
The Warlock saw his side finish fairly strongly last term despite a poor final position. They have signed a lot of players already, but really need to add quality. Unfortunately their biggest signing is Owen Price, a right winger/striker at just £65k from Stenhousemuir, in addition to a whole load more free transfers. Having said that, they are paying more than generous wages for this level of football. But having started with £10m in the bank, why are they so reluctant to spend?Club infoTransfersSquad ratingsSquad contractsOwen PriceJamie Reed - Top performer so far.

Berwick (glennuk/Josh Crane)
Here we go! After pretty modest spending last season, there's no messing about from Crane this time. Not only are they top spenders, with an outlay of an astonishing £2.4m, but they have completed the first £1m signing for a Scottish Div 3 team, the man in question being young Lee Collins from Wolves.Club infoTransfersSquad ratingsSquad contractsLee Collins - the million dollar man - is he worth it? At 19, should be one for the future, but his value is likely to plummet in a league of this standard...interesting to see how it works out.Leon Cort - another £725k on a centre back. This guy has experience, and you'd think, should stroll through this level.Scott Robertson - for comparison, here's a couple of lower cost - and I would say, much better value - signings. This guy should be excellent in the centre.Louise Dodds - can play on the right or up front, and looks pretty handy.

Dumbarton (Robbo3d/Alex Smith [Nikon Jevtik - sacked])
New gaffer Smith has brought in a few players, even spending a little bit of cash at the heavily indebted club. However, their spending power on wages is severaly restricted. Anything other than last place is likely to be a big bonus this season.Club infoTransfersSquad ratingsSquad contractsStephen Manson - fair player, but looking around the other sides, would struggle to get a game with many of them.Richard Bowers - the young striker is performing head and shoulders above his team mates so far.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Originally Posted by glennuk

How much do you reckon your team has spent on a player? 275k (I hope on another striker)
What do you reckon your top earner is now on? 5k Per week (On the striker)
Who do you reckon is the team to watch next season? The Mighty Berwick obviously.

Having the most games without scoring the most games lost in a row and having the two worst signings IS NOT good enough and i wll expect Josh Crane to have learnt from this experience and not pannick buy. I think some good quality will be in soon and if Churchill gets a good partner i can see us being a force to be reckoned with.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

2008/9 - September 1 - Part 2

East Stirling (rlipscombe/Archie McFergus)
The Shire have been tipped by some for a decent season, and that is already looking a good call. McFergus hasn't splahed out much on transfers, but brought in quite few players to strengthen the team. The sale at huge profit of Mark McAllister is looking like good business; he hasn't scored for Arbroath yet and Alex Williams is banging home plenty.

Elgin (Arkitekt88/Carl Vasquez)
Vasquez has made quite a number of signings, but failed to spend a single penny. The wage bill has rocketed, and they've brought in a number of experienced internationals, such as Neil McCann and a few Carribean islanders - it remains to be seen how they'll adjust to the climate in the north of Scotland though. On the evidence so far, not especially well.

Forfar (paulhartman71/James Hartson-Harris)
After making the play offs last time, hopes are high in Forfar. Hartson-Harris didn't see fit to sign too many players, but has not been afraid to shell out on wages. They must now have one of the highest wage bills in the division, paying players up to just short of £7k/week - a huge hike from last season.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

2008/9 - September 1 - Part 3

Stenhousemuir (bermybhoy/Keld Bordingaard [Henke - sacked])
New man Bordingaard has utilised his first transfer window to conduct a mini squad overhaul. Stenny's board seems less willing to splash out on player's wages than their rivals, and given that, we'll do well to keep up the form we showed for much of last season, this time round.

Stranraer (Walcott's Wonderkids/Brucie Bonus)
Bonus has led Stranraer to a respectable start to the season, in spite of minimal outlay on transfer fees. Jimmy Gibson is the biggest at just £8k. Like so many other clubs though, he's not afraid to lavish big contracts on his players.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

2008/9 - September 1 - Part 4

Second DivisionArbroath (~Ian~/Matt Skiba)
Despite promotion success last season, the club has not invested nearly as heavily as some 3rd division teams. Despite that and record signing McAllister mis-firing so far, they have performed brilliantly and top the league. Media prediction: 3rd

Montrose (5ergio/Mengana)
After storming to promotion last season, Mengana has not been shy about spending the chairman's cash, splashing out just under £800k. By the looks of things, spending it very wisely too. Sitting second already, this lot probably have the ability to romp away with this division as well. Media prediction: 5th

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

2008/9 - September 1 - Part 5

CupsChallenge Cup1st round results - Stranraer, East Stirling and Monrose are the only ones to make it through.

League Cup1st round results - Montrose, Berwick and Forfar all do well, but Albion Rovers are humiliated.2nd round results - all 3 face Premier league opposition, and 3 crash out. Berwick though come mighty close to a giant killing at Falkirk.

GeneralRich list - Some movement here, in part due to massive spending by some clubs to reduce their bank balances.Manager job security - no-one looking too shaky....yet.

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

say we are top of the league, say we are top of the league!!

some well known veterans joining the 'shire.... trevor sincliar and Paul dickov among them. got good money for Mcallister, although i'd have liked McFergus to maybe have spent a little more of it... still, he knows what he is doing.....

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Concede only 2 in 5 games, not even lost one game. Montrose & Mengana is continuing to do well on their 2nd season. 4-0 win over Arboath in Challenge Cup. Maybe we can also beat them for the league huh

Re: Welcome to the Dragon's Den - the Chairmen's battle to the top of Scottish Footba

Originally Posted by 5ergio

Concede only 2 in 5 games, not even lost one game. Montrose & Mengana is continuing to do well on their 2nd season. 4-0 win over Arboath in Challenge Cup. Maybe we can also beat them for the league huh

I think you're in for a good season. Those strikers especially should do really well. Well done on getting the good manager - seems to be making all the difference.

Originally Posted by robbo3d

Not looking good. The debt looks a mistake as I didnt anticipate the effect on wages. Hopefully we can improve gradually and try not to finish bottom.

It's surprising just how much it's restricted the wages to be honest - wouldn't have forseen that. I think it might take a few years for it to turn round unfortunately. At least if it does, the set up is all there to do well.